Dr. Remi Kahane, Executive Secretary
Dr Juergen Anthofer, Portfolio Manager
Dr. Po-Yung Lai, Portfolio Manager
Gladys Machange, Assistant-Secretary
The Global Horticulture Initiative Secretariat, hosting administrative, technical and virtual network operations, was initially based at AVRDC - The World Vegetable Center headquarters in Taiwan, to minimize operational and start-up infrastructural costs. Currently the Secretariat of the Global Horticulture Initiative has found its ground at the AVRDC’s Regional Center for Africa, which has over 10 years of experience in its global mandate: vegetable research and development.
Administrative DutiesCommunication and Strategic Capacity
Technical staff will be responsible for planning and implementing the work agenda, covering all of the research for development themes. This staff duty will also include the information and communication networks. The networking partners are not necessarily gathered in one place, and will therefore benefit from the virtual status of the Global Horticulture Initiative.
Dr. Remi Kahane, Executive Secretary of the Global Horticulture
Initiative (2007-2010), worked as Allium crops specialist in tissue culture and breeding for a French farmers’ cooperative (1987-2001) and was Horticulture Project Manager at CIRAD (2002-2006). He has developed an intensive knowledge of vegetable farming in more than 20 tropical countries, strengthened vanilla research program and urban horticulture initiative in CIRAD and ISHS, expanded its European research outputs on Allium into tropical areas with seed companies or with AVRDC, and contributed to capacity building through research papers, PhD and MSc supervision and lectures or training courses at university or private sector level.
Dr Juergen Anthofer has joint GlobalHort in June 2008 as portfolio Manager. He worked as an agricultural advis
Dr. Po-Yung Lai has recently joined the Arusha staff in a temporary one-year assignment as a Portfolio Manager with
GlobalHort. Po-Yung Lai, born in Taiwan, received his Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in the U.S. He comes to GlobalHort with over 30 years of teaching and administrative experience. Dr. Lai was approached by the Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund (Taiwan ICDF), the major donor country of GlobalHort, to join the small, yet well experienced staff of GlobalHort. Within the capacities associated with his various positions, Dr. Lai became deeply involved in the development of solutions for a multitude of problems or issues confronting farmers and particular industries such as ornamental, vegetable, fruit, and other horticultural or field crops. When serving as the Assistant Director at the University of Hawaii (UH), Dr. Lai worked closely not only with county agents and extension specialists but also with farmers. Po-Yung is an enthusiastic problem-solver at heart and is a trusted guardian of the interests and wellbeing of farmers and other stakeholders.
Gladys Machange is Assistant-Secretary of GlobalHort. In
2005 she received her B.Sc in Agronomy from Sokoine University of Agriculture in Morogoro, Tanzania. From 2005-2007 she worked as an assistant farm manager at Gomba Estate Ltd. in Arusha. Previous to taking her current position she worked for AVRDC-RCA as administrative assistant to the Vegetable Breeding and Seed System project (vBSS).